Hamburgers - The Old Standby

Hamburgers are one of the best and easiest ways to experience grilling. After a little practice, you get to the point where you can grill them just right (especially if you are used to cooking them in the kitchen anyway).

Grilling burgers is a great way to celebrate Labor Day, Memorial Day, 4th of July, or any other Holiday. It takes some time planning for smoking a brisket or a butt. Burgers are an easy standby to fall back on in a pinch. They are great anytime.

The fun challenging part comes with the variations of seasonings and recipes.

Pile it on Top

The most common way of grilling hamburgers is to shape patties out of ground beef and season the exterior. As a matte of fact, that is what I usually do too. It is probably the quickest and easiest way to prepare them.

Simply sprinkle some salt and pepper on both sides of the burger and grill. Although many people go way beyond that and add things like seasoned salt, cayenne pepper, chili powder, garlic powder, etc.

But don't forget about the wet ingredients. Popular splash on seasoning include Worcestershire sauce (my favorite), Tabasco, ketchup, a variety of BBQ sauces, and an occasional slice of cheese.

Mix it in the Middle

Another common way, and a little more messy, of fixing grilled burgers, is to mix some of the seasonings into the meat before making patties. Equally as good, but a little more time consuming.

Quite often people will add cracker crumbs or bread crumbs as in some meat loaf recipes. Naturally any and all seasoning like salt and pepper get mixed in as well.

The above picture shows some hamburgers that my son, Brian, did with chunks of bleu cheese mixed into the burgers. I don't like bleu cheese that much (a little goes a long way), but he said they were great.

Throw it in Between

I have been known to experiment a little, myself. I have made thinner hamburger patties and then placed a layer of cheese and jalepenos in between them. After that, I just sealed the edges of the patties together.

Now you know that the possibilities of those hidden surprises are practically endless. Use your imagination and stuff those burgers with your favorite ingredients. Surprise your guests with what they like.

Do a Custom Combination

Of course you have the choice to do it all. Mix into the meat some choice ingredients, layer some goodies into the middle and then sprinkle the finishing touches on top. You see where this could be pretty fun to try?

Remember to Add the Fun

Never forget why you are doing it all anyway. Of course you might be a little hungry, but you do it for the fun, fellowship and relaxation. Otherwise, you could just fry them in a skillet in the kitchen.